Pipes are fitted or joined with one another in industry to, among other things, connect, install, or repair piping systems. A fitting between two pipes typically includes a pipe being inserted into another pipe having a portion of larger diameter than the pipe being inserted. Various techniques may be used to secure the connection between the pipes, but a common technique is to use a pressing tool to deform the portion of larger diameter by compression against the inserted pipe.
A drawback of the pressing tool technique is that after pipes have been fitted, there are not many accurate ways to determine whether the pipes were securely connected. One approach used to identify unsecured pipe fittings is a fluid test technique where a pipe fitting is tested under pressure by circulating fluid through the pipes and inspecting the pipe fitting for leaks. This approach is often inaccurate. Further, the fluid test technique is often problematic because of the fluid that leaks from the pipe fittings. Because the fluid test technique requires that the pipe network be connected prior to testing, it is not possible to fix the fitting without first leaking the test fluid. The aforementioned drawbacks of the fluid test technique make it a cumbersome process for testing the security of a pipe fitting connection.